Musicians

Marty Johnson: Drums

Marty Johnson started formal drum lessons at the age of 8, when his father began nurturing his musical talent. In his extensive drumming career, Marty Johnson has been the man laying down the beat for jazz greats like Herbie Hancock, Clark Terry, and Don Grusin, and local brass legends Tower of Power. Marty has played drums numerous times with Kay Bouler at the prestigious Monterey Blues Festival. As Oakland’s mayor, Jerry Brown, officially declared May 4th Latoya Day in 2004 after American Idol’s successful Oakland native Latoya London, Marty played drums for the induction ceremony with Allstar Jukebox at the Oakland Civic Center featuring Latoya with Jude Gold and Jay Middleton. Marty Johnson has opened for Earth Wind & Fire as the drummer for Soul Inheritance at the Shoreline Amphitheater. In the ‘80’s, Marty played gigs around the San Francisco Bay Area with Tuck & Patty. Marty’s current band, Spectrum, plays regular gigs at Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland and Rasselas Jazz Club in San Francisco.

Check out any of Marty’s videos for flavors of his diverse drum techniques. Influences from Afro-Latin, Big Band, Swing, Hard-Core Funk, Rock and Jazz-Fusion are all laced into Marty’s rhythms.